Forum Financial Management LP Acquires Shares of 2,870 AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS)

Forum Financial Management LP bought a new position in shares of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited (NYSE:AXS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,870 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 671 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in AXIS Capital by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,931 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in AXIS Capital by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,799 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of AXIS Capital by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 900 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of AXIS Capital by 28.5% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 833 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $74,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. 93.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AXIS Capital Trading Up 4.4 %

Shares of AXS opened at $95.99 on Wednesday. AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has a twelve month low of $60.64 and a twelve month high of $101.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.77, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $94.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.78.

AXIS Capital (NYSE:AXS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The insurance provider reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.29. AXIS Capital had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 18.16%. On average, research analysts predict that AXIS Capital Holdings Limited will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AXIS Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.83%. AXIS Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.25%.

Insider Activity at AXIS Capital

In other AXIS Capital news, Director Charles A. Davis sold 2,139,037 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.50, for a total value of $199,999,959.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,404,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $224,786,435.50. This represents a 47.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AXS. UBS Group boosted their target price on AXIS Capital from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of AXIS Capital in a research note on Monday, January 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $120.00 to $114.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of AXIS Capital from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of AXIS Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AXIS Capital has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.75.

AXIS Capital Profile

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, through its subsidiaries, provides various specialty insurance and reinsurance products in Bermuda, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Insurance and Reinsurance. The Insurance segment offers professional insurance products that cover directors' and officers' liability, errors and omissions, employment practices, fiduciary, crime, professional indemnity, medical malpractice, and other financial insurance related coverages for commercial enterprises, financial institutions, not-for-profit organizations, and other professional service providers; and property insurance products for commercial buildings, residential premises, construction projects, property in transit, onshore renewable energy installations, and physical damage and business interruption following an act of terrorism.